2014-15 Orlando Magic Schedule Released

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By John Denton

Aug. 13, 2014

ORLANDO -- Two nights after opening the 2014-15 NBA season in New Orleans, the Orlando Magic will have the opportunity to unveil their bevy of newcomers in their home debut at the Amway Center.

The NBA released its schedule for the upcoming season on Wednesday night, and it revealed a Magic slate that will be heavy on road games in November and December, but one that is forgiving in February and March when Orlando will have several extended stretches at home. Orlando will have four homestands of at least four consecutive games at the Amway Center – Dec. 19-26, Feb. 11-25, March 1-8 and March 20-April 1.

A new-look Magic squad that spent much of the off-season revamping the roster through the draft, trades and free agency opens the regular season on Oct. 28 in New Orleans – just six miles from where prized rookie point guard Elfrid Payton, the No. 10 pick of last June’s NBA Draft, grew up in tiny Gretna, La. Payton, one of the standouts from July’s Orlando Pro Summer League, is expected to push for major minutes in the Magic backcourt this season while playing alongside of Victor Oladipo.

The Magic’s home-opener will come on Thursday, Oct. 30, when they host the Washington Wizards. It will be the Magic home opener for NBA veterans Channing Frye, Ben Gordon, Evan Fournier, Luke Ridnour and Willie Green and rookies Aaron Gordon, Devyn Marble and Payton. Frye and Gordon were free-agent signings to bolster the team’s outside shooting, while the versatile Fournier was acquired in a draft-day trade with the Denver Nuggets. Gordon was the No. 4 pick in the draft, while Orlando snagged Marble in the second round and he played well enough in the summer league to earn a training camp invite.

Magic season tickets, partial plans, group and single-game Amway Center suite rental opportunities are on sale now. Ticket highlights for the 2014-15 season in the Amway Center, honored with TheStadiumBusiness Awards’ 2013 Customer Experience Award and named SportsBusiness Journal's 2012 Sports Facility of the Year, include: 2,500 seats priced $20 or less, 8,000 seats priced $40 or less and 9,000 seats priced $50 or under. Single-game tickets for the first half of the regular season will go on sale in October at a date to be announced. For ticket information, log on to OrlandoMagic.com or call 407-89-MAGIC.

The Magic, under the leadership of GM Rob Hennigan and the guidance of third-year head coach Jacque Vaughn, open training camp on Sept. 30 at the Amway Center. Orlando will begin preseason play approximately a week later. The preseason schedule is expected to be released in the coming days.

Always of most concern to NBA coaches and players, the Magic will play 17 back-to-back sets of games this season. Of those 17 back-to-backs, eight will feature two consecutive road games, four will have a home game followed by a road game, three will feature a road game followed by a home game and twice the Magic will play home games on consecutive days. Orlando will host Brooklyn and Charlotte on Jan. 2 and 3 and entertain Toronto and New York on April 10 and 11 at the Amway Center.

LeBron James, Kyrie Irving (and potentially Kevin Love) and the Cleveland Cavaliers will play in Orlando on Dec. 26 and March 15, while the Magic will be in Northeast Ohio on Nov. 24. The World Champion San Antonio Spurs don’t play in Orlando until April 1. Led by Kobe Bryant’s return, the Los Angeles Lakers are in Orlando on Feb. 6, while Kevin Durant’s Oklahoma City Thunder play at the Amway Center on Jan. 18.

A stretch from Dec. 30 through Jan. 31 will feature the returns of three key members of the Magic teams that reached the NBA Finals in 2009 and got to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2010. On Dec. 30, former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy returns as president/head coach of the Detroit Pistons. Dwight Howard’s Houston Rockets are in Orlando on Jan. 14. And Jameer Nelson, who was released by the Magic in July after spending 10 years with the franchise, returns on Jan. 31 with the Dallas Mavericks.

A Miami Heat team still reeling from James’ defection to Cleveland plays in Orlando on Nov. 22 (a Saturday night) and Feb. 25. The Magic are in South Florida on Dec. 29 and April 13. Orlando will be looking to end a 10-game losing streak to the Heat that dates back to March 13, 2012.

The Magic will get an early look at returning star guard Derrick Rose on Nov. 4 when they are in Chicago. And they will face Van Gundy’s Pistons for the first time in suburban Detroit on Nov. 17. Rose and the Bulls – always big draws in Orlando – will be at the Amway Center on Feb. 8 and April 8.

Orlando will play six of its first nine games and 16 of 23 to start the season on the road. The early portion of the schedule has a three-game jaunt that will include two stops in New York (Brooklyn on Nov. 9 and New York on Nov. 12). The Magic’s longest roadtrip of the season – a six-game trip over nine days that starts in Indiana and ends in Sacramento – comes from Nov. 28 through Dec. 6.

The schedule is much more forgiving later in the season as the Magic will be home for 13 consecutive days from March 20 through April 1 – a stretch where they will play five games at the Amway Center.

Orlando also catches a big break in February when it will be home for nearly a month straight. From Feb. 11 through March 8, Orlando will play eight of nine games at the Amway Center. The Magic will be home on both sides of the expanded, eight-day break for the NBA All-Star Game, hosting New York on Feb. 11 and welcoming New Orleans into Orlando on Feb. 20 for a stretch of seven games at home out of eight contests.

The only road game during that extended home stretch: A Feb. 27 showdown in Atlanta.

Orlando plays 27 of its 41 home games on Friday, Saturday or Sunday nights. While November (11 away) and December (nine away) are filled with 20 road games, the Magic will be at the Amway Center plenty in February (six home games) and March (nine home games).

Arron Afflalo, who was traded to Denver for Fournier following two highly successful seasons in Orlando, returns to the Amway Center on March 22. The Magic play in Denver on Jan. 7.

Frye, a sweet-shooting power forward, left the Phoenix Suns in July to sign a four-year contract with the Magic. In Orlando, Frye will have the chance to play with his first cousin, Magic forward Tobias Harris. Frye will first face the Suns in Phoenix on Nov. 30.

Gordon, who is the youngest player in the NBA at 18 years old, opted for the NBA following one collegiate season at the University of Arizona. Impressed with the 6-foot-9 Gordon’s athleticism, maturity and heart, the Magic selected him No. 4 in the June NBA Draft. Gordon hails from San Jose, Calif., and assuredly he will be playing in front of several friends and family members on Dec. 2 and Dec. 6 when the Magic play Golden State and Sacramento.

For a third straight season, all Magic games will be televised locally on one channel. All local telecasts will be available in high definition on FOX Sports Florida.

October – PRESEASON

TBA

REGULAR SEASON

Tue. 28 @ New Orleans 8 pm

Thu. 30 WASHINGTON 7 pm

November

Sat. 1 TORONTO 7 pm

Tue. 4 @ Chicago 8 pm

Wed. 5 @ Philadelphia 7 pm

Fri. 7 MINNESOTA 7 pm

Sun. 9 @ Brooklyn 3:30 pm

Tue. 11 @ Toronto 7:30 pm

Wed. 12 @ New York 7:30 pm

Fri. 14 MILWAUKEE 7 pm

Sat. 15 @ Washington 7 pm

Mon. 17 @ Detroit 7:30 pm

Wed. 19 L.A. CLIPPERS 7 pm

Fri. 21 @ Charlotte 7 pm

Sat. 22 MIAMI 7 pm

Mon. 24 @ Cleveland 7 pm

Wed. 26 GOLDEN STATE 7 pm

Fri. 28 @ Indiana 8 pm

Sun. 30 @ Phoenix 8 pm

December

Tue. 2 @ Golden State 10:30 pm

Wed. 3 @ L.A Clippers 10:30 pm

Fri. 5 @ Utah 9 pm

Sat. 6 @ Sacramento 10 pm

Wed. 10 WASHINGTON 7 pm

Fri. 12 @ Atlanta 7:30 pm

Sat. 13 ATLANTA 7 pm

Mon. 15 @ Toronto 7:30 pm

Wed. 17 @ Boston 7:30 pm

Fri. 19 UTAH 7 pm

Sun. 21 PHILADELPHIA 6 pm

Tue. 23 BOSTON 7 pm

Fri. 26 CLEVELAND 7 pm

Sat. 27 @ Charlotte 7 pm

Mon. 29 @ Miami 7:30 pm

Tue. 30 DETROIT 7 pm

January

Fri. 2 BROOKLYN 7 pm

Sat. 3 CHARLOTTE 7 pm

Wed. 7 @ Denver 9 pm

Fri. 9 @ L.A. Lakers 10:30 pm

Sat. 10 @ Portland 10 pm

Mon. 12 @ Chicago 8 pm

Wed. 14 HOUSTON 7 pm

Fri. 16 MEMPHIS 7 pm

Sun. 18 OKLAHOMA CITY 6 pm

Wed. 21 @ Detroit 7:30 pm

Fri. 23 @ New York 7:30 pm

Sun. 25 INDIANA 6 pm

Mon. 26 @ Memphis 8 pm

Thu. 29 MILWAUKEE 7 pm

Sat. 31 DALLAS 7 pm

February

Mon. 2 @ Oklahoma City 8 pm

Wed. 4 @ San Antonio 8:30 pm

Fri. 6 L.A. LAKERS 7 pm

Sun. 8 CHICAGO 6 pm

Mon. 9 @ Washington 7 pm

Wed. 11 NEW YORK 7 pm

Fri. 20 NEW ORLEANS 7 pm

Sun. 22 PHILADELPHIA 6 pm

Wed. 25 MIAMI 7 pm

Fri. 27 @ Atlanta 7:30 pm

March

Sun. 1 CHARLOTTE 6 pm

Wed. 4 PHOENIX 7 pm

Fri. 6 SACRAMENTO 7 pm

Sun. 8 BOSTON 6 pm

Tue. 10 @ Indiana 7 pm

Wed. 11 @ Milwaukee 8 pm

Fri. 13 @ Boston 7:30 pm

Sun. 15 CLEVELAND 6 pm

Tue. 17 @ Houston 8 pm

Wed. 18 @ Dallas 8:30 pm

Fri. 20 PORTLAND 7 pm

Sun. 22 DENVER 6 pm

Wed. 25 ATLANTA 7 pm

Fri. 27 DETROIT 7 pm

April

Wed. 1 SAN ANTONIO 7 pm

Fri. 3 @ Minnesota 8 pm

Sat. 4 @ Milwaukee 8:30 pm

Wed. 8 CHICAGO 7 pm

Fri. 10 TORONTO 7 pm

Sat. 11 NEW YORK 7 pm

Mon. 13 @ Miami 7:30 pm

Wed. 15 @ Brooklyn 8 pm

*All local telecasts on FOX Sports Florida.

*All games also heard on Magic Radio Network (Flagship: ESPN580 Orlando) and in Spanish (ElOrlandoMagic.com).